JIM WHARTON (WOOD COUNTY)
A West Virginia broadcasting treasure, Jim Wharton served the Mid-Ohio Valley well for 45 years as a television sportscaster.
In 1976, Wharton went to work for his hometown station – WTAP – and from that moment on gave viewers the best of the best in local sports coverage.
A 1973 graduate of Parkersburg Catholic High School, Wharton served as the weekend sportscaster/weekday sports reporter early on in his career before being elevated to Sports Director in 1984.
In 2000, he created, produced and anchored the award-winning “Football Frenzy” show, which features area high school football highlights from across the region on Friday nights.
He also established the Student Athlete of the Week segment, which honors outstanding high school seniors from the Mid-Ohio Valley.
Wharton logged many miles covering thousands of local area high school and college games in the fall, winter and spring during his time at WTAP. His career also included working bowl games, Major League Baseball spring training and the Daytona 500.
In addition to anchoring weekly sportscasts and filing feature stories, he had the chance to display his play-by-play talents for 20 years with WTAP’s “Football Frenzy Overtime,” which features live telecasts of area high school football games. He’s also called games for Marietta College.
He was recognized countless times for his work by both The Associated Press of West Virginia and Ohio.
The list of honors includes the AP Lifetime Achievement Award.
Jim Wharton Video
Jim Wharton Plaque
Mid-Ohio Valley Sports Hall of Fame 